Dorothy Kay, a resident at Woodside Apartments in Rochester Hills, talks about a recent sexual assault on one of the residents, pictured Friday June 14, 2013. Sh's holding her dog Chi Chi who she says "has a mouth on her" to warn her of anybody that's around her apartment. (Oakland Press Photo:Vaughn Gurganian)

Dorothy Kay of Rochester Hills was recently woken in the middle of the night to see a man peering in her window at Woodside Apartments.

"I've seen people looking into my windows before, and it's frightening. On the first floor, we have a fenced patio with a railing around it. Somebody has to jump that fence to see inside," said Kay.

"The first time I saw someone looking in my window, I practically had a heart attack. ... It was dark outside. He had his face pressed up to the window."

So Kay said she wasn't surprised when she heard that a woman was sexually assaulted at 1 a.m. Thursday after being awoken when asleep on her sofa. The Oakland County Sheriff's Office describes the suspect as a black man in his 40s with a medium-build and approximately 5-foot-10.

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"I live in building 33, which backs up to a wooded area. I see a lot of people going through there that have absolutely no business going through there," said Kay.

Kay lives by herself, except for her dog Chi-Chi. She said it scares her to think this happened in her complex, and she feels bad for the victim.

On Thursday, the problem of peeping escalated.

The unknown suspect came in through the woman's unlocked sliding glass door in the 100 block of Woodview Court, put a blanket over her head, stood over her and forced her to perform a sex act, said Captain Michael Johnson of the Rochester Hills substation. The victim says he told her, "Please do not call the police," before leaving the scene on foot.

Johnson said he would encourage residents to be extra cautious and make sure to lock their doors.

"We have had complaints of window peeping before within the last few days. We think it's probably the same suspect," said Johnson.

Chris Kayne, who has lived at Woodside Apartments for two and a half years, said his wife is "scared to death."

"It happened pretty close to us," Kayne said, pointing down the street from his building to show where the incident occurred. "I'm going to get a bar to put across my doorwall."

He described his neighborhood as safe and said he had never heard of anything like this happening previously.

"Apartment complexes are usually kind of seedy. ... But I've never heard of anything but this. And it threw us for a loop," said Kayne.

The suspect has not yet been found, and the investigation continues. Anyone with information is asked to call deputies at 248-858-4911.

"It's very disturbing. It's just what's happening to society in general. People are opportunists, and they want to take whatever they can take and get whatever they can get," said Kay. "It's very sad."

Even though her dog is small is stature, she called Chi-Chi her "guard dog." When the man was peering in her windows, Chi-Chi is who woke her up.

"I have (my dog), and she has a mouth. ... If she hears something, she's going to bark and hopefully scare them away," said Kay.